He has honed his skills in several places. Most notably, 46-year-old David Quinn made his mark at Boston University, and the former Terriers defenseman will be named its hockey coach, replacing Jack Parker, at a news conference at 11 a.m. Tuesday.

Quinn, a native of Cranston, R.I., played for BU from 1984-87. From there, the former first-round draft choice (No. 13 overall by Minnesota in 1984) was an assistant coach at Northeastern for a year. He served in that same job at the University of Nebraska-Omaha from 1999-2002 and then came home to BU as an associate coach from 2004-09, the last year the Terriers won the NCAA title.

Those close to Quinn say no one is a more impressive factor in a family living room than Quinn when it comes to closing a deal with a potential recruit. He was highly regarded at BU for his discipline and commitment.

He moved on to coach Lake Erie in the American Hockey League for three seasons and has served as an assistant coach for the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche this year.